1 suspect dead, others sought in Baton Rouge police slaying

One suspect is dead, and possibly two more being sought, following a shooting Sunday morning (July 17) that killed three police officers and injured three others in Baton Rouge.

The East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office confirmed the totals, and said authorities are asking anyone with possible information to call 911. Police said the public should be looking for anyone wearing military fatigues, all black or a mask, and carrying a long gun or assault rifle. They should also be on the lookout for suspicious vehicles.

The shooting took place around 9 a.m. outside -- and possibly inside -- the B-Quik convenience store on Airline Highway near Old Hammond Highways, said L'jean Mckneely, spokesman for the Baton Rouge Police Department.

Officers exchanged gunfire with the deceased suspect, who was shot dead outside a fitness center near B-Quik, Mckneely said. Police have not approached the suspect's body, and are waiting for a bomb unit to check for possible explosives.

Federal authorities have joined state and local police in the investigation.

Mark Clements, a resident in the area, said he had let his dogs out in the yard shortly after 8:30 a.m. when he heard roughly 10 to 12 gunshots. Later, he saw helicopters flying overhead.

The wounded officers are with the Baton Rouge Police Department and East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office, Mayor Kip Holden said, and have been taken to Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center.

"It's like a nightmare all over again," Holden said.

The shooting comes in the midst of ongoing protests in Baton Rouge following the fatal officer-involved shooting of Alton Sterling, and nearly a week after five Dallas police officers were killed by sniper fire.

"The rhetoric now needs to be toned down to zero," Holden said. "This is not a Wild West town. This is a town of law and order."

Gov. John Bel Edwards issued a statement calling the shooting "an unspeakable and unjustified attack on all of us at a time when we need unity and healing."

"Rest assured, every resource available to the State of Louisiana will be used to ensure the perpetrators are swiftly brought to justice," the governor said.